Are you built to be strong?
Why strong is NEVER the correct term to use in reference to black people?
In Merriam Webster, strong. is defined as having or marked by great physical power; having moral or intellectual power, having great resources ( as of wealth or talent). My argument for why strong is an invalid term to describe people is that it is not all encompassing meaning that it does not include people in the societal binary . Strong could be considered ableist because of its origins. The strong “trope” came along in slavery when Europeans were fascinated by the “African” in the physical sense because they were “strong” and could do things that. and how Europeans. could not. I think that In this society, we require more inclusive terms. You may be asking why everything needs to be so inclusive? Everyone should be accepted as they are but it is not the case.In our society, social norms do not include intersectionality.
Intersectionality is how this “strong” trope can be solved. In the key to understanding intersectionality, an example is that you can be black and a woman but not black, a woman and disabled. These do not work together in society’s case. Intersectionality needs to incorporate all these terms as one. Moya Bailey highlights this quote to examine how disability and intersectionality need to be included. As well as how our society approaches these issues.
We take up intersectionality to argue that a single-issue approach to disability fosters the same pitfalls. Our intervention requires intersectionality to explicitly attend to disability. It is our contention that racism, sexism, and ableism share a eugenic impulse that needs to be uncovered and felled.
I think that intersectionality is only argued in one sense. In that, being you can only experience racism, and sexism but not ableism. Ableism is something that many people do not think about and it is an impulse that people have. This impulse is the downfall of how intersectionality can incorporate disability. If we are able to put aside our biases and notions of putting people in “categories”.
While, intersectionality needs to include disability. It also needs to include black feminism as well. Now, there is a platform emerging of black disabled women who are taking a stance on how they are being excluded from this narrative. I think that if we use intersectionality as a tool to show how the black community can be inclusive to its own people. It has to start with us to make more change.
The level of intersectionality that is in black feminism itself is limited. It does not include Black Trans Feminist thought. It does not include disabled folks either. If we are all fighting against the system that oppresses us. Why are we not including other marginalized groups into the conversation? Intersectionality calls on how black people intersect with other identities that are oppressed daily. Once this acceptance of both frameworks of Black Trans Feminist Thought as well as Disability Studies are incorporated into black feminism. They all need to be one. It is not black feminist thought without these frameworks in play.
These frameworks can be updated and changed as language evolves. The beautiful thing is that as the language evolves so does the acceptance around it. The ADA or Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 which was signed only 31 years ago. There is still work to be done in this area. It shows how that every area even black feminist thought has a long way to go. They are all trying to reach this goal of equality. You could say that some people are trying to make that harder to do. The way for a goal to become a reality is to be the first to 1) raise an issue 2) to address the problems within the issue presented 3) receive feedback from others (who either had not considered it to be an issue) 4) to be able to have a solution to the problem and finally 5) to be able to bring the issue to people of power and see how they can make the ultimate goal a reality
I think that because everything is evolving does not mean that people are averse to change. To those who are accepting but not willing to change. I want to pose something to you. What if your life changed in the blink of an eye? From personal experience, I can tell you it is not a pleasant experience. If you had an illness or disability that was not being represented, you would upset and try to do everything in your power to be represented. I am saying that it is up to us to make the changes that we want to see. For instance, not having separate movements and moving as one. By this, I mean that the Black Trans Movement and Disability Movement. should go in tandem with Black Matter Lives Movement. I believe that this may happen over time. Time is of the essence. We are only given so many days on this earth. We should use them wisely and for good to lift up our brothers and sisters who are trying to reach the same goal to not be treated as a second or third class citizen. The right to be able to do everything your heart desires without limitation or worry. The sad reality is that some people do not see it that way. They are only trying to get ahead to advance themselves and the people that they protect and who protect them. The world needs to change. As a nation we have a tendency to look at people with disabilities differently. It is inherently biased and ableist. I ask you if that were your relative that you love so much, you do to make sure that they had every opportunity to succeed in life. To this, I say that this is how Black feminism and intersectionality should work. They should give every black person a chance to be able to make their voices heard and not be silenced by biases, and other opinions.
Intersectionality is something that is evolving and growing. We will have to make the change to include all marginalized communities. The way to start this off now, is to dedicate your platform to speaking for all Black voices. I mean all Black voices especially those more severely impacted by the system.For example, Black Trans folks and Disabled People as well as Black Women.
So the next time, you want to use the word strong to define a Black person
Here are some suggestion in lieu of the “strong” trope,
- Resilience
- Powerful
- Fierce
- Passionate
- Thriving
- Steadfast
The article below, helps to illustrate why intersectionality is needed. We need to help the next generation to reach their highest potential and be accepting of all people.
